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Battery life

2K views 17 replies 12 participants last post by  PhotoAl 
#1 ·
I have a 2019 GT SE. It's on its second winter stored in its chilly garage home.
Last winter I put the battery on a trickle charger for most of the time it was garaged.
This year, I was a little late attaching the charger and when I did, it read just 4.3V. The charger will only work when the batter is at least 5V. I removed said battery from the bike and gave it a quick two minute 'kick' with a 20 year old charger I have. I then quickly reinstalled the battery with the modern trickle charger (Oxford Optimiser) and everything seems fine. Consistently reading over 12V now and occasionally as high as nearly 14V.
1. Is the battery likely now to be permanently damaged?

I have a Fuzeblock attached with heated jacket tails, a USB socket and onboard camera - all devices removed before storage except the USB socket, but Fuseblock still attached to the battery.
2. Is this likely to be a drain on the battery?
 
#2 ·
Have you wired the fuzeblock in to the bikes wiring (the GPS harness/trigger wire) so it switches on/off with the ignition? If not i would say yes it could be a small drain, but nothing that should take the battery that low.

My bike has never been on a trickle charger (i know it is certainly more mild in SE England) but it has never had issues starting after a month of sitting in the garage without a charger.

is your charger a trickle/reconditioner as well? They can help to rebuild a battery if it has been taken down to low power and give its capacity back.
 
#3 ·
If you allow a battery to go "flat" - it can affect the overall life of the battery.

The F800GT does have some parasitic drain on the battery to keep some systems energized......so occasionally you do have to provide a bit of charging to keep the battery in full charge. I don't permanently connect a trickle charger - but I do attach one every few weeks to bring the battery up to a full charge. I don't permanently attach the trickle charger as I want to avoid any overcharging if the trickle charger would malfunction.

I bought my 2016 bike used and I don't know the history of storage or battery charging over the winter - but I did have to buy a new battery this summer (2020) as the original battery was getting noticeably weaker and I could hear that the starter motor was not running full speed when I energized the starter.
 
#4 ·
There is a small drain from the electronics, particularly if the motorcycle has an alarm. In the riding season, it's not noticeable if you are riding at least every two or three weeks, longer than that and you may notice a weaker start up.

As for damaging the battery, the issue is how much sulphation occurred while the voltage was low. There are many variables and your experience will be sufficiently unique that I won't generalize. I feel it is safe to say, keep the charge up during the non-riding season and pay attention to sounds during start up - unless there is a mechanical break in the battery, there are usually some clues before failure. I feel there are likely many years of useful service ahead.

(For extra piece of mind, consider installing a voltage monitor. )
 
#5 ·
All very useful thanks.
Yes, the fuzeblock is wired into the GPS switch. No alarm.
I was very surprised how low the reading was. My Kawasaki Versys 650 did 45,000 miles in ten years and sat in the garage every winter without a charger. The battery lasted 9 years before I changed it. That bike's been off the road for 18 months now with negligible loss of charge.
 
#7 ·
...........- all devices removed before storage except the USB socket, but Fuseblock still attached to the battery.
My USB socket has a parasitic drain even with nothing plugged into it, I did measure and remember being quite surprised as to how how high it was considering it was doing nothing, it was the reason it's switched by the GPS power supply.

I don't have a battery tender on full time but I have one connected that powers up when I switch power on in the garage with is normally a few times a week.
 
#8 ·
Must admit. I had the USB socket fused on the unswitched/always-on side of the fuzeblock so I could charge my phone with the engine off when camping. That's probably the drain culprit. That would explain a lot! The heated jacket tails and the camera are fused on the switched side - but they wouldn't be a drain anyway. Thanks for that.
 
#12 ·
Your battery has most likely been permanently damaged if it got that low. That's not saying it won't work for you, but it's life has definitely been shortened. Any loads that have quiescent current draw while the bike is switched off, and all modern bikes have them, will contribute to slow discharge of your battery. These include loads attached to the NON-SWITCHED side of the Fuzeblock.

If you wish to store your battery in your cool garage without a battery tender, disconnect your fully charged battery from the bike for the duration (only the negative lead is needed).
 
#14 ·
I have my trickle charger through a FZ1 Fuze Block, I have had no problem in the two years on my GT and the previous 3 1/2 years on my ST, the FZ1 is set to "direct to Battery" with the fuse. Other accessories
are set to switch on and off with the ignition, the trigger is the BMW satnav power lead, to the Fuze Block.
I connect it for a day or so about every 2nd week during the winter, and not often in the summer.
 
#15 ·
I have my ST set up the exact same as Carl (Pigmy) except that I use a PC8 as the Fuze block and use my low beam as the remote turn on for the other accessories. Works great with my .75 Amp battery tender to the pigtail attached to the Fuze block. And just like him, I attach it for a couple days every 2-3 weeks of no riding.

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G891A using Tapatalk
 
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#16 ·
I use a Deltran "Battery Tender Plus", which is NOT a trickle-charger, but a battery maintainer. It will only provide charging if the battery needs it. I hook up both my bikes to one of these whenever they sit idle, even for a day. The onboard electronics will slowly draw from the battery and by using one of these, my batteries stay in very good condition. I use one on our car, as well, as it isn't driven many miles, regularly.

https://www.batterytender.com/Battery-TenderR-Plus
 
#17 ·
Interesting. That link is not accessible from the UK. A message says that due to coronavirus restrictions they cannot ship the item. I did a search but could only find limited information in the description, for example on Amazon UK.
I am using one of these:
https://www.oxfordproducts.com/moto...iser_900_essential_battery_management_system/
Not sure how it compares. Whatever the device is doing, the battery has no doubt had a fatal wound that will shorten its life.
 
#18 ·
My 2016 had the OEM battery with no problems at all. It would sit for 4 or 5 weeks sometimes between long trips. My scooters sit even longer particularly during the winter and batteries last 4 or more years. My bikes and scooters are kept in a garage which varies from low 50s in the coldest part of winter to maybe 80 in the summer but mostly in the 60's and 70's F. USB port is controlled by a Hex EzCan which didn't appear to have much battery drain. Before retiring I rode to work most days and my bikes were never stored for longer than 3 weeks at a time. Battery life was something I never had a problem with. Early in the life of a battery don't think running the battery down has too much effect, but late in the battery life it is killer. A few years ago my wife's smart car ran the battery down. It was several years old at the time. I charged it up and got her going but figured it was a goner so went to Batteries+ and bought a replacement battery. Car kept starting so didn't change the battery. A year ago it wouldn't start so I figured time for a new battery then discovered the new replacement battery I had put on a shelf and forgotten about! It was 2 to 3 years old! Charged it up and replaced the battery and it has worked very nicely! The battery in a Smart car is under the passenger floor. I had to lay across the seats and then pick up with my arms extended to remove and install - not easy with a heavy battery that just barely fits and is not a straight from down into place.
 
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